''Ipagpatawad Mo'' (English: ''Forgive Me'') is a 1991 Philippine family drama film directed by

Laurice Guillen Laurice Ilagan Guillen-Feleo (born January 31, 1947) is a Filipino actress, film and television director, and college professor. Early life and acting career Guillen studied at St. Theresa's College, Cebu City, earned an AB English degree be ...

from a story and screenplay written by Olivia M. Lamasan. Starring

Vilma Santos Rosa Vilma Tuazon Santos-Recto (born November 3, 1953) is a Filipino actress and politician. In a career spanning over seven decades, she is recognized for her versatility in acting across various genres of film and television in the Philippine ...

and

Christopher de Leon Christopher Strauss de León (born October 31, 1956), also known as Boyet, is a Filipino actor, filmmaker and politician. Often referred to as the "King of Philippine Drama", he gained stardom for his leading man roles in numerous film and te ...

in their 16th film together, the film revolves around a couple who try their best to make their marriage work while they struggle with their firstborn who has autism. The film co-stars

Charito Solis Rosario Violeta Hernández Solís (October 6, 1935 – January 9, 1998), professionally known as Charito Solís, was a Filipino film actress. She was considered among the major dramatic film actresses in the Philippines, with a career spannin ...

Delia Razon Delia Razon (born Lucy May Grytz Reyes; August 8, 1930 – March 15, 2025) was a Filipino actress born to a German father and a Spanish Filipina mother, who made her debut in 1949 in the LVN Pictures' ''Krus na Bituin''. Doña Narcisa de Leon ...

Bing Loyzaga Carla Victoria "Bing" Cuerva Loyzaga-Gibbs (born April 9, 1970) is a Filipino actress and singer. She is known for her villainous roles in several shows '' Babaeng Hampaslupa'' as Katharina, '' Sinasamba Kita'' as Isabellita and '' Kay Tagal ...

Amy Perez Maria Armida "Amy" Parale Perez-Castillo (; born September 5, 1969), also known as Tyang Amy, is a Filipino television and radio presenter. Noted for her strong opinions and distinct brand in hosting, she has since established herself as a depe ...

and

Joonee Gamboa Joonee Gamboa (born Jose Espineli Gamboa Jr.; August 7, 1936) is a Filipino actor. As veteran actor, he appeared in more than 145 movies and television shows. Career Gamboa started off as a stage actor, acting in plays produced by Philippine ...

. Produced and distributed by

Viva Films Viva Films, Inc. (also known as Viva Films, stylized as VIVA Films) is a Philippine film production and distribution company owned by Viva Communications. It was founded in 1981 by Vic del Rosario Jr. and his sister Tess Cruz. Viva Films is o ...

, the film was theatrically released on 23 October 1991.

Plot

Celina and Mike's marriage encounters turbulence when they learn that their first-born child, Mike Jr. (nicknamed Junjun), has autism.

Cast

Production

ABS-CBN's resident writer and producer, Olivia Lamasan, was tasked by director Laurice Guillen to write a screenplay after the latter discovered her great efforts and contributions in rewriting the scripts. The lead stars, Vilma Santos and Christopher de Leon prepared and tackled their roles as the parents of an autistic child by visiting a school for special needs, reading materials related to the subject matter, watching a film with the related themes, and speaking to the parents whose children have autism.

Release

The film received a television premiere on 22 April 1993, as a feature presentation for

GMA Network GMA Network (an acronym of its legal name, Global Media Arts and commonly known as GMA) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine commercial broadcast network, serving as the flagship property of publicly traded GMA Network (company), ...

's movie block, ''Viva Sinerama''.

Reception

Critical reception

Butch Francisco of ''

The Philippine Star ''The Philippine Star'' (self-styled ''The Philippine STAR'') is an English-language newspaper in the Philippines and the flagship brand of the Philstar Media Group. First published on July 28, 1986, by veteran journalists Betty Go-Belmonte, ...

'' gave praise to the cast's performance, stating it is "a major film event of the year, with quiet and restrained performances by the cast that erupts in emotional outbursts only periodically and judiciously". Elvira Mata of ''

Manila Standard The ''Manila Standard'' is a broadsheet newspaper in the Philippines which, as of 2017, is owned by the Romualdez family. The Romualdezes, through incumbent speaker of the House Martin Romualdez, also own Journal Publications, Inc., the owner ...

'' gave a positive review, stating that she is glad that the film's story talks about a "more sophisticated subject", rather than the ones about romance and affairs. Nena Z. Villanueva, also from ''Manila Standard'', stated that the film "should be an eye opener for such doctors and parents".

Accolades

References

External links

* {{Olivia Lamasan 1991 films 1991 drama films 1990s Philippine films 1990s Tagalog-language films Viva Films films Philippine drama films Films directed by Laurice Guillen Films with screenplays by Olivia Lamasan Films produced by Vic R. Del Rosario Jr. Films produced by William C. Leary Films scored by Willy Cruz Films about autism Films about parenting